Budget challenges mean tough choices for Sheppard MWR activities

  • Published
  • By George Woodward
  • By 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Morale, Welfare, and Recreation services at Sheppard AFB face serious financial challenges beginning Oct. 1.

The ongoing budget challenges faced by DoD require the Air Force to focus increasingly limited appropriated funds on operations, readiness and modernization, so installations will no longer have the APF funds to support MWR programs at previous funding levels.

Historically, MWR activities fall into one of three funding categories and were approved for specific levels of appropriated fund support:

· Category A - 100 percent (fitness centers, library, community centers, etc.)
· Category B - 50 percent (Arts & Crafts, Outdoor Recreation, ITT, etc.)
· Category C - limited support (Golf, Bowling, Club, etc.)

The loss of APF support puts more pressure on MWR programs to be self-sustaining through sales and user fees. Programs that don't generate enough income to be self-sustaining face the possibility of closure, reduced services or transformation to a new operating model.

"Unfortunately, most of our MWR activities are dependent on some level of APF support to remain self-sustaining under today's business models," said 82nd Force Support Squadron Commander Lt. Col. Joseph Chargualaf.

The Lake Texoma recreational area, for example, generated a profit last year, but water treatment services were paid with appropriated funds which offset the overall expenses to operate the facility. Without the APF utility subsidy the activity would have lost money for the year.

Other revenue-generating activities face an even tougher challenge. The golf course received APF funding for utility costs and still lost a substantial amount of money for the year. The same holds true for the Club as it also received a utility subsidy from appropriated funds and lost money for the year.

"As we move forward to 2015 we face losing this APF subsidy, which puts activities such as the Club and Golf Course in a very bad financial situation," Chargualaf said.

Non-revenue generating activities, such as the library and community center, face the biggest challenge of all. As Category A activities, they generate very little if any revenue, and if appropriated fund support is not available in 2015 the Force Support Squadron will be forced to transform these activities into a new operating model to remain open.

"This is obviously a huge challenge for us," Chargualaf said, "but we are committed to preserving and even enhancing the activities our population uses the most. Today's MWR activities may not look the same tomorrow, but we're doing everything we can to continue to provide the MWR support our people deserve."

One spot of good news is that even though APF dollars have been reduced to support CAT B activities that are not self-sustaining, it is still possible to use nonappropriated funds, or NAF, in place of APF dollars.

"The Airmen's Club is a successful operation, se we want to build on that," Chargualaf said. "We've asked headquarters for, and have received, NAF construction funds to build outdoor patio areas in the front and rear of the Airman's Club. We're also planning to renovate the lounge area to create more of a sports-bar atmosphere like what you might find downtown. Ultimately, we want the lounge area to be more of a sit-down restaurant during lunch hours for all Team Sheppard to enjoy."

The base is also including MWR activities in its effort to develop public-public and public-private partnerships with local governments, non-profits and businesses. Sheppard is one of about a dozen Air Force agencies selected as a test-bed for these partnerships, and while the process is in the early stages of development it could yield innovative solutions to some of the MWR challenges.

However, those operations that lose money reduce the amount of NAF funds available to sustain other activities and the ability to recapitalize, and therefore place a huge burden on the overall MWR Fund. Because of that, Chargualaf stressed that some dramatic changes to the status quo are inevitable.

"We have formally requested permission to close the golf course," he said. "No one is happy about that, but it has been losing several thousand dollars per month for years, and we just can't sustain a $100,000+ annual loss anymore."
If that happens, though, it doesn't mean the course will just be boarded up and left dormant.

"We're looking at how we might repurpose that area if we do in fact have to close the course," Chargualaf said. "Some of the ideas we've considered include mountain bike trails, running paths, disc golf, and relocating the skeet range and paintball there. The idea is to bring in activities that resonate with a larger percentage of our population than the golf course seems to."

The Force Support team is still exploring innovative, out-of-the-box ideas to deliver relevant, cost-effective MWR programs for Team Sheppard - and they welcome ideas and suggestions from all comers.

"All options are on the table," Chargualaf said. "Restructuring, merging, downsizing, contracting, partnerships and, yes, even closures - though that remains our last option. Bottom line, we face a tough road ahead, but we're working hard to get through this transition while continuing to provide Team Sheppard the world-class service it deserves."

If you have an idea or suggestion you want to share, please use the Interactive Customer Evaluation (ICE) system online by going to the 82nd Force Support Squadron web page at www.82fss.com and clicking the ICE button at the top of the screen.